GET THE SHOT! Lighting A Plane Under an Approaching Storm

The Shoot

Moose Peterson is an American wildlife and aviation photographer. Moose says he wants to do more than just take pretty pictures. He wants to use photography to educate the public and preserve his forefathers’ legacy. In other words, Moose wants to shoot real things. This shot, for instance, was all about getting an authentic shot of the World War II fighter aircraft Grumman Wildcat. And Moose got what he asked for. Just like back in the 40s, when the Wildcats had their most historically decisive moment over the South Pacific, a thunderstorm was approaching fast. Moose had to work quickly to get his shot.

The Challenge

The fragile, old aircraft did not like rain very much, so Moose had to be quick about it. But the sky got darker by the minute, which meant that the amount of available light was constantly decreasing. If Moose had shot with a manually controlled flash, he would have had to constantly adjust its output. But in this case he was shooting with two B1 Off-Camera Flashes, wirelessly synced and controlled from the Air Remote TTL-N on his Nikon camera. The remote was set to TTL Mode, which meant that the flash automatically adjusted its output. “The sky changed so dramatically that I got three entirely different pictures with exactly the same setup,” says Moose. “But TTL enabled me to really concentrate on the subject and forget about the light!”

The Solution

Moose had one B1 Off-Camera Flash, equipped with a Softbox RFi 1×4’, pointing towards the pilot at a 60°angle. “This light was used to light up the pilot and a little bit of the parachute on the ground,” says Moose. The second B1 was equipped with a Magnum Reflector and a 10° Grid and aimed towards the front of the engine. “The Magnum with a 10° Grid is one of favorite Light Shaping Tools,” says Moose. “It gives me a good quality light at a distance. Aircrafts are large, so I need all the power I can get. I can honestly say that without the power and flexibility of the B1 Off-Camera Flash and the Air Remote TTL-N, I wouldn’t have been able to make the shot.”